In the Ruins//Legolas

Chapter 10; That's One Big, Smelly Lizard

Durion bends and picks up his dropped sword, staring at the blade covered with black orcish blood. His shoulder aches, no matter how he tries to stretch it. He begins to make his way back to Bard's house, keeping an eye out for any stray orcs that could still be in the town when he hears it. A roar so terrifying it gives him goosebumps. He turns and looks towards the mountain. Through the darkness he sees the shadow only thanks to the stars it flies under. Smaug is coming, and he is not sparing anyone. Durion runs.

"Kili, come on!" He hears from the outside of Bard's house. He rounds the corner and sees the dwarves, Bard's children and Tauriel boarding a boat.

"Durion!" Kili shouts and the elf is relieved to see the dwarf breathing and standing on his own, now unshaking legs.

"Kili!" Durion pulls the young dwarf into a hug and then ushers him onto the boat. "We need to go, like, now." He tells Tauriel and she nods. They push away from the side of the house and row the boat onto the lake. Smaug swoops close over them, letting them feel his deadly size and power. Then he rises and unleashes the first of many flaming breaths. Laketown burns. Durion almost falls into the water when their boat collides with a much larger boat filled with gold. It carries the town's Master.

"My gold. My gold!" The fat man calls as the collision makes some of the town's treasure fall off. Durion is tempted to jump onto the boat and kick some more into the water, just to relieve the poor boat's load, of course. They pass under a bridge when Bain suddenly shouts.

"Da!" He points at a tall bell tower. There Bard is, longbow in hand, shooting at the dragon.

"He hit it! He hit the dragon!" Kili shouts when they see one of the arrows bounce off the tough dragon scales.

"No..." Tauriel sighs.

"He did! He hit his mark, I saw!"

"His arrows cannot pierce its hide; I fear nothing will." Tauriel sais and Durion frowns. Didn't he see Bard leaving the house with the last Black Arrow? Suddenly, Bain leaps up and grabs a hanging hook, using it to swing to the dock.

"What are you doing?!" Bofur shouts.

"Come back! Bain, come back!"

"Leave him! We cannot go back!" Tauriel tells them solemnly.

"Bain!" Tilda cries as they pass under another bridge. Durion jumps and catches himself on its railing, then pulls himself up, despite his protesting shoulder.

"Durion!"

"I'll bring him back! Go!" Durion shouts at them and sprints after Bain. He catches up to him quickly enough and grabs his arm. "Bain! What the hell are you thinking?!"

"Let me go! I have to go to dad!" The kid struggles in Durion's hold.

"To do what?!"

"I hit the Black Arrow in that boat after da got arrested! I have to get it to him!" Bain shouted and managed to slip out of Durion's hold. He ran to a boat tied to a pier under a statue of the town's Master and dug under some nets. To the elf's surprise, the boy lifted the Arrow up from it. Durion jogged to him and stopped him from taking off again, then crouched in front of him with a smile.

"That's a great hiding place. Good job, Bain. But you really have to get to safety."

"But-"

"I understand that this has to get to Bard, and I will deliver it. But your father would never forgive me or himself if anything happened to you." Durion rubbed the boy's shoulder in comfort when he saw the tears threatening to fall. "Now, if you run, you can make it to the last bridge over there around the time the dwarves pass under it. You jump in and get your sisters to safety, do you understand?" After a moment of hesitation, Bain nods. He hesitantly hands over the Arrow and runs a couple of steps before stopping and turning back around.